Star Wars MMO

Well, you could see this coming a mile away. EA was betting the farm on Star Wars: The Old Republic and it didn’t exactly reach the World of Warcraftexpectations that the Redwood Shores company was hoping for. So what does it do now?

It’s time for Plan B. It’s time for The Old Republic to go free-to-play. EA announced today that starting this fall, the Star Wars MMO will have a free-to-play option. It does the following:

1) Gives players access to each of the eight iconic Star Wars character class storylines

2) Lets players hit up to level 50

3) New higher-level game content and features are available through individual purchases or a subscription. That’s the rub.

What other ways does subscription differ from free-to-play? Well, subscribers get unlimited access to all the game features and they get monthly grants of Cartel Coins, a new virtual currency. It sounds like this is a new way for EA to separate in-game credits (ie funds you earn through gameplay) and currency that players buy with real-world money. Cartel coins can be used to purchase in-game items that include customizeable gear and convenience features aka stuff that won’t make the game unbalanced.

It looks like some new content and “advance player features” and are going to be locked for free-to-play players and they can be “unlocked” with Cartel Coins.

On top of that, Star Wars: The Old Republic will go on sale for $14.99 with a one-month subscription free.

So what do you think? Is it enough for you to go back and help Vette? You can check out more on Star Wars: The Old Republic free to play here.